On Monday we left our Airbnb house for the bus station area of Shinjuku. We had booked bus tickets direct from Shinjuku to the 5th Station of Mt Fuji. Most hikers choose to start at this station located at 2,300 m rather than walking from the bottom. This still leaves about 1,400 m to hike to reach the peak of 3,776 m.
Once the bus dropped us, we bought final supplies and ate a ramen lunch. I was pleased that the temperature had dropped compared to the hot and humid summer weather.
Departing on the hike from the 5th Station
I know many people who had intended to hike up Mt. Fuji only to have their plans bashed by the weather. Even worse they worked hard to get to the top only to have the visibility of zero fully covered in clouds. At the 5th station, the sunny weather provided us hope that our journey would be memorable. Little did we know how memorable it would turn out to be. While the sunshine warmed us, the strong winds reminded us that we were high up. I questioned whether we would be able to hike to the top in such winds.
Arriving at the 6th Station
We set out on our hike and soon the winds died down and we were huffing and puffing up the narrowing pathways. The route turned into a stairmaster workout and finally ended up being some basic bouldering. Most in our group did well but Jane and her thirteen daughter struggled as the pitch became steeper. I questioned if they were struggling at this point, would they be able to make it all the way to the top.
Jane bought all the kids an official Mt Fuji wooden walking stick. The tradition is to pay 300 yen at various huts up the mountain and receive a burnt in stamp recognizing that level. The kids loved it and were happy to commemorate their achievements.
One of the traditions is to buy a wood walking stick and then have stamps burned into it along the way up the mountain
Our Japanese friend Koji had made reservations at a hut at the 7th Station. This meant we would have about 1,200 m to hike up in the dark in order to reach the summit at sunrise. For about $70USD, each of us got a basic evening meal at 5 p.m. of curry and rice, a bunk to rest and a bento box for the morning.
After arriving at the 7th station we relaxed at our hut “for the night” until our departure at 11:45 p.m.
The boys taught us a card game called President that we all enjoyed but we all hit the hay by 7 p.m. knowing that we were all getting up at 11:30 p.m. to continue our journey. This was not going to be a long sleep.
As we were preparing for sleep, we noticed that the views out to the world below were spectacular in the setting sun. The hues of blue, orange and pink painted the sky. Even the owners of the hut were outside taking photos of the incredible sky. We hoped that this boded well for clear skies in at sunrise in the morning.
I don’t remember sleeping much but the others around reported that my snoring provided a different story. I just remember looking at my watch about every 30 minutes. Sleeping at high altitudes is never easy.
Back in March of 1999, my friends Robert, Christine, Annamarie and I hiked up the Machame route of Mt. Kilimanjaro. We choose the six day route that provides an extra day of a acclimatization over the much more popular “Coca-Cola” route that is only five days. Christine was very fit and often did triathlons. But once her body got above 12,000 ft, it began to shut down. She struggled her way up to the last camp at 17,000 ft but did not join us for the final accent to the summit at 20,000 ft. Some people’s body just are not meant to function in high altitudes.
The hike up Mt. Fuji was much lower but will above the 12,000 ft cut off point that affects many people. I wondered if anyone in our group of seven would be afflicted.
Several of our phone alarms went off simultaneously at 11:30 p.m. and we made our final preparations for our Fuji ascent. While excited, we all shared an unspoken concern for our health and safety. Hiking all night long in the pitch black up a steep mountain would not be easy.
Starting out we left the 7th Station
We set out around 11:45 p.m. on Monday, July 13. The sky was clear and pitch black. One of the key items we were told to bring was a headlamp to illuminate the way. I was hoping for a little moonlight but no such luck. As we started walking, Jane mentioned that her daughter couldn’t find her headlamp. This really concerned me. I was fearful for her safety let alone her ability to reach the summit.
My son and nephew almost immediately walked on ahead of us. I stayed right behind Abby so that my headlamp could light up her path. Unfortunately the path was made up of volcanic rock and thus many shadows made it difficult to navigate. She slipped an fell several times but after a while seemed to slip into a silent motion forward. I started weighing some of our options. In addition, she was struggling with her breathing due to the physical exertion and the high altitude. Would she and Jane have turn back? Or at least wait until it got lighter to attempt the summit?
At this point too, Koji was dealing with a funny tummy. He and Tom held back so he could spend some time in the less than pleasant toilets. Our team was quickly breaking down and spirits were falling.